


when baking chocolate chip cookies

by respoftw



Series: 35 Ways To Say I Love You In The Pegasus Galaxy [9]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Homophobia, Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-27
Updated: 2016-08-27
Packaged: 2018-08-11 10:03:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7886875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/respoftw/pseuds/respoftw
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ways to say "I Love You" #9</p>
<p>Madison asks an awkward question and John gets covered in cookie batter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	when baking chocolate chip cookies

“And if you need me, I’ll have my cell phone so just call and you remember that we use 911 in Canada, right?”  

Rodney rolled his eyes at Jeannie.  “I am perfectly capable of looking after my niece for two hours, you know.  Just,” he waved his hand at the door, “go and corrupt the minds of today's youth already.”

Jeannie still looked unconvinced which Rodney was taking as an affront to his very being.  He looked around for John, knowing that he would find him perennially slouched against the nearest door frame.  “Help me out here, Colonel,” he said.  “You tagged along on this visit, you might as well be helpful.”

John smiled at Jeannie; that one smile he had that usually turned the natives to putty.  Rodney sort of hated that smile being directed at anyone but him.  

“We’ll be fine,” John said to Jeannie.  “I’ll be here to make sure that he doesn’t turn her against English teachers forever.”

Jeannie smiled back at him, her concerns so clearly relieved that Rodney threw his hands up in disbelief.

“Oh, what?” he said.  “You’ll believe  _ him _ but not your own brother?  Really feeling the love here.”

Jeannie ignored his ranting while she pressed a quick kiss against John’s cheek.  “Thanks John,” she said.  “Bye Mer.  Madison, be good for your Uncle Mer and John.  I’ll be home by five.” And then she was gone, out the door, leaving Rodney still in need of a good rant.

“Unbelievable,” he started, “I mean, I’m her flesh and blood and she - - “

“Uncle Mer?” Madison tugged at his sleeve.

“What?” he snapped.  “I mean, yes sweetie, what is it?”

Madison was too inured to him to really mind the snapping and smiled up at him.  “Can we make cookies?”

“You want cookies?” he asked.  “I think there are still some maple creams in the cupboard.”  _ Unless a certain Colonel ate them all _ , he didn’t add.

“Not, I wanna  _ make  _ the cookies,” Madison said.

“But, why?”

“‘Cause they taste better when you make them yourself silly,” Madison explained.

“Yeah, Uncle Mer,” John drawled.  “ _ Everyone _ knows that.”  John turned to address Madison.  “Come on, munchkin. Let’s go see if we’ve got everything we need.”

* * *

Making cookies - chocolate chip cookies, even if the chocolate was vegan - was much more soothing than Rodney had expected. He’d expected an explosion of flour and hours of clean up but Madison seemed to be an old hand at baking and directed John and himself in the task with a surety that he felt certain would benefit her in the scientific field later in life. Plus, there was the added benefit of cookie dough and the sight of John Sheppard, scourge of the Wraith, in an apron.

(He totally took pictures with his phone.)

“Uncle Mer?” Madison asked as she watched him place the first batch of cookies in the oven.  “Timmy in my class said that a boy and another boy being together was wrong but Mummy said that you and John were together and that was a good thing.”

Rodney was so not ready for this talk and sent a pleading look to John who was suddenly very busy creaming the mixture for the next batch.   _ Traitor. _

He sighed and lifted Madison up to sit on the counter so they were at eye level.  “Is there a question in there somewhere?” he asked.

Madison shrugged.  “I just didn’t know why he would say it was bad when Mummy said it was good.  I wanted a..a third data point.”  She looked up at Rodney like butter wouldn’t melt, like she didn’t know that listening to her say anything remotely scientific was his kryptonite.  

“Well,” he said, rolling his eyes, “obviously  _ I  _ think it's a good thing because I’m with another boy.  That’s not a very subjective data point to pick.”

“But why would Timmy say that it was bad?”

Rodney threw a dish towel at John.  “A little help here, Colonel?”

Sighing, John placed the bowl on the counter and moved to stand beside Rodney.  

“Some people don’t like things that are different from them,” John started.

“Like how Timmy’s Mum was all mean when Mummy went back to work?” Madison asked.

“Exactly like that,” John agreed.  “And I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that Timmy’s Mom might have given him the impression that a boy should only ever be with a girl.”

“But why would she think that?” Madison asked.

“Well - uh,” John scratched at the back of his head (getting sugar and flour all over it in the process).

“Oh for - - Timmy and quite possibly Timmy’s Mum is an idiot,” Rodney interrupted.  “They’re like those people in that book we read last night who insisted the Earth was flat even when there was scientific evidence to prove that it wasn’t.  People can be with whoever they want to be.  You can love another boy  _ or _ another girl - you can even love both at the same time - when you’re much, much older, at least 35.  And boys can love other boys.”

Madison looked thoughtful.  “So,” she mused.  “Does that mean you love John?”

John turned to look at Rodney, raising his flour dotted eyebrows.  “Yeah, Rodney?” he drawled.  “Does that mean you love me?”

Rodney poked him and then Madison with a wooden spoon, sending Madison into a fit of giggles.  “Yes, you overgrown toddler,” he said, “I love you.”

“John, do you love Uncle Mer?” Madison asked.

“Sometimes,” John grinned.  

“Really?” Rodney asked, smiling.  “You’re going with sometimes?”  He gathered up a spoonful of batter and brandished it like a weapon.  “You want to rethink that answer, Colonel?”

“Nah.”

Rodney let the spoonful of batter fly, a perfect shot that landed splat in the middle of John’s nose.  Madison squealed with delight and John grinned dangerously.

“Oh, it is  _ on _ , McKay.  Madison - to your battle station!”

* * *

Jeannie walked into a disaster zone when she came home.  A cookie batter covered disaster zone populated by two happily exhausted forty-somethings and a hyperactive seven year old.

“Mummy, Mummy, can Uncle Mer and Uncle John watch me tomorrow too?”

“No.”

**Author's Note:**

> Come say hi on [tumblr?](http://buffycuddlespigs.tumblr.com)


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